Chapter 2 Summary

The fallout from the kidnapping is equally devastating. Dr. Pedro Guerrero, Beatriz's husband, is the first to be told of the incident and subsequently, the first family member to arrive at the scene. Unbelievably, Alberto Villamizar was home at the time, asleep, not two hundred meters from where the abduction had taken place. On hearing the news, or at least a confused account thereof, Alberto rushes outside where a police officer recounts the scant details uncovered thus far. There he encounters Dr. Guerrero, who appears to be in a state of stunned disbelief.

Returning home, Alberto, who maintained a good political and personal relationship with then president, César Gaviria, calls the presidential palace to relate the incident. Villamizar, having survived an attempt on his life four years earlier – an attack no doubt as a result (at least in part) of his work on the National Narcotics...